Because of the ways in which wolves have
evolved and the special demands of their way of life, wolves have become one of
the most highly social of all carnivores. Wolves live in packs - groups of
animals that are usually related by close, blood ties (family units). A
hierarchical order exists within the pack; every animal knows its place in that
order.

Researchers studying wolves today observe the
common traits shared by humans and wolves. Like many human beings, wolves live
in extended families. For wolves, those families are called packs.

Wolf
Pack

A wolf pack is like a family unit, consisting of an adult pair and their
mostly grown offspring. Members of the pack form strong social bonds that
promote internal cohesion.

Wolves live
in packs because cooperation allows wolves to bring down larger prey than
individual wolves can do on their own. Pack life also insures the care and
feeding of the young, and allows wolves to expertly defend their common
territory.

Alpha
Wolf

The male and female leaders of the pack are called alphas. These two
animals lead the pack during a hunt and often eat first when a kill is made.
Generally, though not always, the alpha wolves are the only wolves in the pack
to have pups.

Beta
Wolf

Next in the social hierarchy of the pack is
the beta wolf. Betas can be either male or female and, if something happens to
one of the alphas, it is the beta that will most likely move up in rank. the
remainder of the pack is typically composed of adolescent wolves, one to four
years old, several pups and an omega.

Omega
Wolf

An omega wolf can be either male or female
and is the scapegoat, the lowest ranking member of the pack. The omega lives on
the outskirts of the pack, usually eating last. The omega serves as both a
stress-reliever and instigator of play.

Breeding

When wolves become adolescents and have
reached sexual maturity, many will leave their home territory in order to search
for a mate. These wolves are called dispersers. The long, drawn-out howl of a
'lone wolf' will hopefully attract another unattached wolf. The two new
self-proclaimed alphas find suitable territory to start a family of their own.

Wolves sexually mature at around 22 months of
age and most mating take place with members of their own pack. Mating with the
alpha female, by other members of the pack, is almost always forbidden. The
breeding season for wolves occurs from roughly January through March, depending
on the latitude. Animals in the highest latitude usually have the latest season.
Pups are born in the spring (following a 63 gestation period). The entire pack
takes a part in raising the young. The average litter size is four pups.

Wolf pups at birth weigh about one pound and
are darkly furred. They are deaf, blind, have little or no sense of smell and
cannot regulate their own body heat. For their safety, wolf pups are born in a
den.

Wolf
Den

Wolf dens can be in rock caves abandoned by other animals, in the hollowed
bases of large trees, or in shallow surface beds. More commonly, pregnant female
wolves dig dens themselves, often as early as three weeks before the pups are
born. Wolves prefer their den sites to be located on elevated areas near water.

Dens are typically tunnels that extend six to fourteen feet into the earth. At
the end of the tunnel is an enlarged chamber where the newborn pups are kept.
The age of the pups when the pack abandons the den is not known; it is thought
to be between eight and ten weeks after the pups are born.

Between the time the pups leave the den and
the next winter, the young wolves remain at rendezvous sites while the adults
hunt the surrounding countryside. When adults return from the hunt, the pups
lick the muzzles of the adult animals, and the wolves regurgitate predigested
food for the young pups.

As the pups grow, some of them will be very
assertive in their play, while others in the same litter will be weaker and more
submissive. Like human children, the more assertive wolf pups will grow up to be
alphas while the more submissive pups will most likely grow into subordinate
wolves.

Territory

Wolves occupy territories and will defend
its territory against other wolves. Usually, defense requires no more than
intimidating an outsider with a growling and a baring of teeth. At times a chase
will ensue and in an extreme situation the chase may result in a physical
confrontation. Boundaries of territories may overlap, yet separate packs will
usually avoid one another at most costs.

In normal circumstances, the territory
which belongs to a certain pack of wolves will remain so for many generations.
Younger wolves will 'inherit' the territories belonging to their elders.

Expansion of territories depends upon land
and the availability of prey. One wolf per every 10 square miles (ex: five
wolves to fifty square miles) is thought of as a 'comfortable' amount of space.
For some species of wolves will migrate in order to follow prey and when a pack
increases in size it may split or members might disperse.

You think you own
what ever land you land on... The earth is just a dead thing you can claim...
But I know every rock and tree and creature... Has a life, has a spirit, has a
name... You think the only people who are people... Are the people who look and
think like you... But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger... You'll learn
things that you never knew... you never knew... Have you ever heard the wolf cry
to the blue corn moon.... Or asked the grinning bobcat why he grinned ?.... Can
you sing with all the voices of the mountain ?... Can you paint with all the
colors of the wind ?.... Can you paint with all the colors of the wind ?... Come
run the hidden pine tralls of the forest... Come taste the sun-sweet berries of
the earth.... Come roll in all the riches all around you.... And for once never
wonder what they're worth.... The rainstorm and the river are my brothers... The
heron and the other are my friends.... And we all connected to each other... In
a circle, in a hoop that never ends... Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the
blue corn moon.... Or let the eagle tell you where he's been ?... Can you sing
with all the voices of the mountain ?... Can you paint with all the colors of
the wind ?... Can you paint with all the colors of the wind ?.... How high does
a Sycamore grow ?... If you cut it down then you will never know... And you'll
never hear the wolf cry to the blue corn moon... For whether we are white
or copper skinned.... We need to sing with all the voices of the mountain... We
need to paint with all the colors of the wind... You can own the earth and
still.... All you own is earth until... You can paint with all the colors of the
wind.